Photographic material containing envelope



Feb. 9, 1943. F. H. LINES ETAL PHOTOGRAPHC MATERIAL CONTAINING ENVELOPE Filed April 5,`l940 J 67,. if 4 -H'ro oPzn, TEAR mm1-ig -zzmr ATTORNEY. l

Patented Feb. 9, 1943 PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIAL CON TAINING ENVELO Frank H. Lines and Raymond W.'r Towle, Sr., Rochester, N. Y.; assignors to Defender Photo Supply Co., Inc., Rochester, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application April 3,1940, Serial No. 327,586

2 Claims. (Cl. 229-785) Thisinvention relates to a photographic material containing envelope and has for its object to ailord apaper container vfor light sensitive sheets' or vother photographic material of economical and lpractical construction, and which can be readily opened when the contents are to 4 be removed.

More particularly, the invention has for itsl purpose to provide a photographic material containing envelope in which the sealing ap in-y cludesv a tear strip so constructed and arranged that the user by 'gripping one end of the tear strip and pulling the later endwise can separate' it quickly from the body of the sealing flap and "thus open the envelope to permit accessto the contents. N

Another object of the invention is to afford an envelope o! simple construction made from paper stock and so formed that the sealing flap including the tear strip comprises a single thickness of paper throughout and requires norspecial there is'little likelihoodV o the tear strip separating or becoming accidentally torn, but it remains securely connected to the body of the sealing flap along the lines of perforations until it is intentionallyipulled by the user.

To these and other ends, the invention consists inthe construction \and combination of parts that will appear clearly from the following description when'read in' conjunction with the accompanying drawing, the novel features being pointed out in the claims following the speclcation.

In the drawing: l

Fig. 1 is a view in elevation of an envelope, partially broken away, showing the sealing ap before it is folded over on the body oi the envelope, and incorporating a preferred embodiment of the invention; y

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the sealing nap secured to the body of the envelope;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, partially broken away, and showing theposition of the parts after the tear strip has been removed;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line 4-4 ot Fig. 2 looking in the direction indicated, and

Fig. 5 is a similar sectional view after removal.

of the tear strip.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, in winch like reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the several views, I designates kthe body of an envelope that is closed at one end by the flap 2, and is provided at its opposite end with a sealing ap that is adapted to be brought d own over the body of the envelope and secured thereto to seal the contents, after the photographic sheets or other materials have been inserted.

The envelope is constructed of any relatively tough paper stock such as made from heavy, rugged long bers, and in the practical embodiments thus far constructed, there has been employed a seventy pound. paper stock known as Duplex tan and Black kraft which has been found after repeated trials to give the desired results, although slightly lighter or heavier stock may be employed successfully and without defeating the purposes of the invention.

`It is, however, essential that the paper used be suiciently tough and have such weight that the tear strip, to be described presently, does not have =to be reinforced, stiiened, or treated in any way, but may be'oi the same thickness as the other portions of the sealing flap, while performing its required function of separating readily, when pulled, along both lines of perforations through-its entire length, so as to permit quick-access to the contents of the envelope.

The sealing flap, which is integral with the body of the envelope, includes a connecting portion 3, an attaching or sealing portion 4, and an intermediate tear strip 5 that is denedby spaced lines of perforations 6 and 1 that separate the tear strip from the connecting and attaching portions respectively.

The tear strip 5 is irelatively wide between its lines of perforations 6 and l, such width being preferably from one-half to flve-eighths of an inch or thereabouts, and the' connecting portion 3 is somewhat wider than the tear strip 5, preferably about one inch in width, while the at- 4 ,pulled away from the body of the sealing flap.

The widthof the tear strip is such that when it is gripped and pulled endwise, it will not tearA laterally between the lines of perforations but will `tear readilyendwise along both lines of perforations throughout its length and become readily separated from the attaching and connecting portions 3 and 4 respectively by an endwise pull.

It is essential to provide means for readily gripping and pulling the tear strip, and also to prevent the latter from accidentally separating or tearing partially along its lines of perforations, and to accomplish this the connecting and attaching portions 3 and 4 of the-sealing flap are cut away at one end, as indicated at 8 and 9 respectively, to afford a gripping portion or extension I at one end of the tear strip which can be readily held engaged to pull the tear strip when th'e seal is to be broken.

The gripping portion I0 is preferably rounded as shown, and connected with the portions 8 and 9 by means of continuously curved edges Il and I2 respectively, which intersect the lines of perforations in the manner shown, thus avoiding any sharp angle in the edge at either line of perforations which would be likely to cause an accidental break along 'one or both of the lines of perforations. The structure shown is such that the continuously curved edges of the sealing iiap prevent the perforated lines from giving way or commencing to tear at their ends until the tear strip is deliberately gripped and pulled. The sealing ap may be provided with triangular portions I3 adjacent to the body of the envelope, affording light seals when the ap is closed, as usual in this general type of construction.

In using the envelope, the photographic sheets or other `light sensitive materials are placed therein and the sealing flap is brought down over the body of the envelope and laid smoothly thereagainst, the attaching portion 4 being secured to the body of the envelope by suitable adhesive applied along the lower edge of the attaching portion. When thus secured, it Will be understood that the tear strip 5 and gripping portion l0 lie atWiseclosely'against the body of the envelope so that the latter can be handled and stacked in piles as usual without likelihood Y of the tear strip accidentally pulling away. When the user is ready to open the envelope and remove the contents, the portion l0 of the tear strip is gripped and pulled endwise to the right with reference to Fig. 2, and by a slight steady pull in this direction, the tear strip 5 is entirely separated from the connecting and attaching portions 3 and 4, as shown in Fig. 3. The connecting portion 3 can then be laid back, and the envelope is open with its contents accessible for removal. v

While the invention has been described with reference to the particular construction herein shown, it is not conned to the exact details set forth, and this application is intended to cover such modiiications or departures as may come Within the purposes of the invention or scope of the following claims.

We claim: l

1. A photographic material containing envelope formed of tough paper stock and comprising an integral sealing flap which includes a wide tear strip of approximately one-half to ve-eighths of an inch in width defined by spaced lines of perforations, the tear strip being spaced substantially from the adjacent end of the envelope by a distance of approximately double its width enabling the tear strip to lie atwise against the envelope without bulging when the envelope is loaded with paper sheets and the sealing rlap is secured to the body of the envelope, the sealing ap being cut away to afford a gripping 'portion at one end of the tear strip extending beyond the adjacent edges of the sealing ap, said cut-away portions having edges which connect with the adjacent edge of the gripping portion along continuous curves at the points where they intersect said lines of perforations whereby accidental tearing of said strip is obviated, and one of said points of ntersection being located inwardly of the other in relation to the end of the gripping portion causing one of said lines of perforations to tear in advance of the other.

2. A photographic material containing envelope formed of tough paper stock and comprising an integral sealing flap which includes a wide tear strip of approximately one-half to iive-eighths of an inch in/width extending across the sealing flap and defined by two spaced lines of perforations, a connecting portion between the.

tear strip and the adjacent end of the envelope of approximately double the width of the tear strip enabling the tear strip and connecting portion to lie flatwise against the envelope without bulging when the envelope is loaded with paper sheets and the sealing ilap is secured to the body of the envelope, and an attaching portion of greater width than the tear strip, the said connecting portion, tear strip and attaching portion all comprising a single ply of paper of uniform thickness throughout andl adapted to lie closely to the body of the envelope, said connecting and attaching portions of the sealing flap being cut away to afford a gripping portion at one end of the tear strip, said gripping portion extending beyond the connecting and attaching portions and the edge of the gripping portion being connected with the adjacent edges of the connecting and attaching portions along continuous curves where they intersect said lines of perforations defining the tear strip whereby accidental tearing of said strip is obviated, one of said points of intersection being located inwardly ci the other in relation to the end of the gripping portion and the attaching portion being of less length than the adjacent line of perforations while said adjacent line oi perfor-ations is of less length than the other line of perforations whereby there is provided a tear strip gripping portion of substantial size and readily engegeablc which starts. to tear along one line ci' periorations slightly lin advance of the other. 

